The present invention relates to a mechanical puncher with which tuyeres, are punched suitably according to the angle of rotation of the converter.
Matte formed in a blast furnace, a reverberatory furnace or a flash furnace is transferred into a converter where it is converted into blister copper by an oxidation reaction using an air blowing operation. A copper converter customarily has the form of a cylinder whose axis lies horizontally. A number of air blowing nozzles or tuyeres, forty-eight in one example, aligned parallel to the axis of the cylinder are provided on the outer shell of the converter. Molten matte is supplied into the converter through an opening on the top of the converter. Iron and sulfur components contained in the molten matte are oxidized by the oxygen in the air blown thereinto into iron oxides and sulfurdioxide gas. Molten materials in the converter are solidified and form encrustations at inner tips of the tuyeres by a diabatically cooling the molten material with blowing air. In this case, it becomes difficult to supply sufficient amount of air into the converter, as a result of which the converting operation must be suspended, when the solidified encrustations has built up. Therefore, mechanical punching operation is carried out in order to remove the solidified encrustations frequently.
According to the operating conditions of the converter, the level A of molten matte in the converter may be changed to the level B as shown in FIG. 1. In this case, the converter must be rotated in order to maintain constant the distance between the end of the tuyere in the converter and the surface of the molten matte as a result of which the tuyere is displaced from the position 3.sub.1 to the position 3. Accordingly, in order to satisfactorily mechanically punch the tuyeres 3, it is necessary to change the angle of inclination .alpha. of the punching rod with respect to the horizontal line to the angle of inclination .beta. while it is also necessary to change the position a of the punching rod to the position b both in a horizontal direction and in a vertical direction.
As described above, it is necessary to change the position of the punching rod in conformance with the variations in vertical direction, horizontal direction and angle of inclination of the tuyeres. Accordingly, a mechanism for controlling the positional relationships between the punching rods and the tuyeres is unavoidably intricate.
A typical conventional mechanical punching device is shown in FIG. 2. Rails 16' are mounted on a stationary frame 14' to allow a movable frame 9' to be moved parallel to the line of tuyeres. The mechanical puncher is moved vertically and towards and away from the converter by moving a board 15' up and down the slope of the frame 14'. The angle of inclination of the punching rod 4' is controlled by the combination of a worm gear 10' and a worm wheel 7'. Accordingly, with the mechanical punching device, it is necessary to direct the punching rod to the aimed tuyere by separately or individually controlling the three factors, vertical direction, horizontal direction and angle of inclination of the punching rod. Thus, the required control operation is complex and can be performed by a skilled operator only.
Accordingly, an object of the invention is to provide a mechanical punching device for punching the tuyeres of a converter in which the position and inclination angle of the punching rods are set with a single operation in conformance with the position of the tuyeres of which the angle of inclination and the horizontal and vertical position are changed according to operational requirements of the converter.